Legacy

Bible Passage: Hebrews 11

INTRO

“Soma Church exists to love the body of Christ and equip them to do the work of ministry here, near and far, all for the glory of God.”

Show Steve Jobs Photo

This man that I am showing on the screen is one of the most important men to walk this earth in the last century.

This is Steve Jobs, the creator of none other than the first trillion dollar company to ever exist… Apple

Jobs is renowned not only as a genius in the areas of computing, mobile phones and portable technology but also business.

There was a period in Apple’s existence in which Jobs was forced out of his position at Apple as CEO due to his overdriven and rigid personality

Little did they know, is that is actually what made Apple, Apple.

Jobs left the company and started his own, all the while, Apple began to crumble and almost ceased to exist

Apple eventually begged for Jobs to return and he again became the CEO of Apple turning the company around and saving it from extinction.

Most everyone would look at the life of Steve Jobs and think, “What a legacy!”

Biggest company ever, best products in the world, all the money you could ever want and fame like one could only dream of.

But, what if I told you that even Jobs himself didn’t agree?

You see, not only was Jobs the Apple guy, but he was also a Father of four children.

Jobs died in 2011 after an 8 year battle with cancer and as he was in his final weeks of life, Jobs sat down with a biographer named Walter Isaacson

Isaacson reports Jobs dying with much regret even telling Isaacson "I wanted my kids to know me," "I wasn't always there for them, and I wanted them to know why and to understand what I did."

Isaacson said of Jobs reflection, “Jobs’ honest admissions in his final days highlight a universal dilemma faced by many, especially parents. The challenge of balancing professional success with family responsibilities is a tightrope walk. Jobs’ reflections echo the sentiments of countless others who find themselves torn between achieving career milestones and being present for their children. In today’s fast-paced world, this struggle for a work-life balance is more pronounced than ever. His regrets, shared in those last few weeks, serve as a powerful message to all parents about the importance of balancing life’s various demands, a lesson that extends far beyond the realm of technology and business success.”

This morning, we are closing out our family series called Sacred Ground by talking about legacy

I believe there is a profound reality we can learn about this subject from the life of Jobs

Money, fame and genius are not the things that will build lasting legacies…

But there is one thing that will… Faith.

Legacy is the harvest of a faith filled life.

BODY

Turn with me to Hebrews 11 and let’s discuss what I mean…

Hebrews 11 is widely known as the Hall of Faith.

It was written to a Jewish audience to show them how the faith that their forefathers placed in God saved them from their sins and made them great.

The writer begins in verse 1 by saying Hebrews 11:1–3 “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation. By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.”

We see here this beautiful and poetic description of the nature of faith, the object of faith and the outcome of faith.

A quick word on each…

The Nature of Faith

Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”

According to this verse, faith is not blind, but it is absolute conviction based on evidence.

Chair Illustration

Biblical faith, is belief based upon substance. Belief in God based upon how he has reveled Himself to us in His Word and in His world.

Which is a perfect segway into a discussion on the object of faith…

The Object of Faith

Hebrews 11:3 “By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.”

The power of our faith is not in the act of faith but in the object of our faith…God

He holds the power and he gives us the ability to have faith

Romans 12:3 “For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.”

When we submit ourselves to this faith, then we see the outcomes…

The Outcomes of Faith

The outcome of faith is the forgiveness of our sins, our salvation.

Ephesians 2:8 “For by grace you have been saved through faith.

And in Hebrews 11:2 “For by it the people of old received their commendation.”

The thing that made these people great was not who they were or what they did but what God did through their faith.

This is what Jesus meant when he said in Matthew 17:20 “He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.””

Let me ask you, do you believe that?

Do you first of all have faith in Christ?

Right behind that, does your faith lead you to believe that you have power?

Power to live holy. Power to kill sin. Power to influence other. Power to be disciplined. Power to lead. Power to move mountains if God would so choose!

Look with me at the harvest of legacy produced by faith in this chapter…

Hebrews 11:4–5 “By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks. By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God.”

Hebrews 11:8–12 “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had promised. Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as many as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.”

Hebrews 11:17–26 “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, of whom it was said, “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back. By faith Isaac invoked future blessings on Jacob and Esau. By faith Jacob, when dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, bowing in worship over the head of his staff. By faith Joseph, at the end of his life, made mention of the exodus of the Israelites and gave directions concerning his bones. By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden for three months by his parents, because they saw that the child was beautiful, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict. By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward.”

Shall I continue?!

Legacy is the Harvest of a Faith Filled Life.

So how do we do this and specifically in the context of our families?

Obey

By faith we say, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord”

The pinnacle of discipleship is obedience

Are you frustrated with your walk with Jesus? Do you feel stuck?

Are you obeying?

Too many christians want the outcomes of faith but without the cost…

Is your home marked by obedience?

Simply saying yes to God!

Keep God at the center of everything we do

Colossians 1:18 “And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.”

Christ gave all so that we would esteem Him as all.

But if we are being honest, most of the time the things of God are closer to the bottom of the list than alone at #1.

Fall in Love with Him

Psalm 63:1 “O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.”

If you struggle with the first two, have you ever considered it might be because Jesus is not your treasure?

I turn 25 tomorrow and I have been reflecting the last couple of weeks on something my dad told me a few years back.

He said, “Micah, use your twenties to fall as in love with Jesus as you possibly can.”

Can I be honest… I am walking into 25 wishing that 20-24 were marked more by my love for Jesus than everything else.

I can honestly say that marriage, fatherhood, ministry, friendship have the first half of my twenties than a passionate intimacy with Jesus.

My prayer as I step into 25 is “Jesus, make me love you more.”

CLOSING

Grampy Photo

This is a photo of my grandfather, Charles Courtney Bartig, holding my newborn daughter a week before he died.

I show you this because when I think about legacy, I think about Grampy…

Grampy experienced the harvest of a faith filled life.

This weekend, over 2,000 people are hearing the gospel here at Soma and at my Fathers church, NorthRoad.

I addition, hundreds of men and women are walking with Jesus today because of Grampy’s faithfulness

And he died December 2021 surrounded by his family singing great hymns of the faith loving him until he breathed no longer.

You might be thinking “He sounded like a special guy!” And because of my bias I would agree with you.

But truthfully, he was just an ordinary guy. A highschool principal…

The only thing special about Grampy was his God.

Jesus was Grampy’s best friend

Every morning was coffee and Bible on the Patio with Granny.

Every meal out was witnessing.

Every Sunday spent excitedly gathering with God’s people.

Prayer was like breathing for Grampy

He was the best encourager

And had a faith that was unmovable

Jeremiah 29:11 Story

I want you to know this morning that being a pastor or some great christian influencer is not the key to a great legacy… faith is.

Grampy is remembered for his faith, not his accomplishments.

If you died today, what would you be remembered for? What would your family say?

Hebrews 11:6 “And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.”

If you are trying to build a lasting legacy upon anything other than faith in Christ and what He has done for us then you are failing.

What if you made a decision that from this day forward, my life will be marked by faithful living so that I leave behind a wake of Jesus when I go to be with Him?

PRAY